Actor can relate to Bobby of 'Company'

Aaron Tveit finds connection to main character in Barrington production

By Joseph Dalton

Updated 12:06 pm, Wednesday, August 9, 2017

Image 1of/1

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 1

Broadway, Film and Television star Aaron Tveit stars in Barrington Stage Company's production of Stephen Sondheim's COMPANY, with performances from August 10 - September 2.
photo credit: Justin Allen

Broadway, Film and Television star Aaron Tveit stars in Barrington Stage Company's production of Stephen Sondheim's COMPANY, with performances from August 10 - September 2.
photo credit: Justin Allen

Actor can relate to Bobby of 'Company'

1 / 1

Back to Gallery

Thursday night in Pittsfield the curtain goes up on "Company," and it could be the hit of the summer season. Barrington Stage Company has booked it for 28 performances through Sept. 2 and already a number of early shows have limited ticket availability.

"Company" is a classic from the early 1970s featuring words and music by Stephen Sondheim and a book by George Furth. Numerous songs from the score have become standards, including "The Ladies Who Lunch," "Another Hundred People," and "I'm Not Getting Married." The story, if you can call it that, revolves around Bobby, a bachelor in his 30s, and his friends – five married couples — who encourage him to finally find the right woman and settle down.

"I'm turning 34 in a couple months," says Aaron Tveit, who plays Bobby, "and I've got a lot of close friends who are married and have children. So I understand the point at life where Bobby is. I'm optimistic, positive and romantic, and my Bobby is in that vein, not negative."

Tveit is a native of Middletown who studied theater at Ithaca College. His Broadway credits include starring roles in the stage adaptation of the film "Catch Me If You Can" and the rock musical "Next To Normal." On television he played a reoccurring character in "Gossip Girl," and had a featured role in "Grease Live."

"Company" is a show steeped in the hustle and bustle of Manhattan, which Tveit — like Bobby — calls home. "Bobby is a person of New York, and I relate to that, and can't imagine myself living anywhere else," says Tveit.

Tveit says that "Company" is sometimes regarded as a harsh sendup of the wedded state. Yet he believes that all views on marriage are represented in the show. He also points out that things have changed considerably since 1970, the year that the show debuted. Today, it's not uncommon for young people to make it through their 20s and even well into their 30s before they get married.

"It's still a progressive musical today, and I can't imagine what audiences thought out of it when it debuted," says Tveit. "Audiences like to escape, but this makes them look at themselves and look within."

Part of what was surprising to audiences was the structure of the show, which doesn't follow the narrative conventions of most musicals or plays. Instead it is presented as a succession of vignettes, looking into the characters' lives, their desires and their problems.

Tveit says that while the new production isn't exactly a period piece, there's still a '70s time frame, which is reflected primarily in the costumes. The set resembles an operating theater at a hospital, with Bobby at the center surrounded by two viewing levels.

"All of my friends are looking in, examining me, and putting my life under a microscope," says Tveit.

"Company" is staged by Julianne Boyd, who is artistic director of Barrington Stage Company. She also directed the troupe's previous Sondheim musicals, "Follies," "A Little Night Music" and "Sweeney Todd," all of which were deemed successes by audiences and critics.

Immediately prior to his taking on the role of Bobby, Tveit was performing in concerts. He's part of a rock cover band and he also does cabaret. Some of those performances allowed him to get ever more fluent with Sondheim.

"His songs are difficult and demanding and complex," says the actor. "His lyrics are so in depth. You have to sit down and learn it. But with this material, once you give in, it opens up and everything is laid out for you."

The role of Bobby is the fulcrum of the show, yet the character only has three songs: "Someone Is Waiting," "Marry Me a Little" and "Being Alive." "Those three songs are incredible, really quality over quantity," say Tveit.

"Being Alive" arrives at the end of the evening and is the most confessional and elaborate of Bobby's numbers. It's proved a surprising challenge to Tveit.

"It's not so physically or vocally challenging, but more emotionally taxing and draining," he says.

Speaking one week prior to opening night, Tveit admits that he's yet to make it to the end of a run-through "without losing it."

"You need the emotion there, it needs to cost that much," he explains. "But your job as an actor is to navigate the material. I'm still trying to find that sweet spot, to access the emotions and still be in control."